Polígrafa Obra Gráfica was launched in 1964 by Manuel de Muga and has published editions featuring over 300 leading artists since then.

Joan Miró in our printing shop

In the 1970s Joan de Muga, son of the founder, opened Polígrafa’s own workshop with facilities for etching, lithography, woodcuts, and other traditional print techniques.

Current partners Joan de Muga, José Aloy, and Álvaro Puigdengolas continue the business, inviting artists to the workshop in Barcelona to develop new projects with other renowned contemporary artists. They normally come for a period of time to Barcelona to work on the plates. While the plates are finished, the professionals in the workshop start doing proofs till the result is accepted by the artist giving the so called “Bon à Tirer” or “BAT“. Then the workshop can start to print the edition in the size already agreed with the artist. Afterwards it is signed and numbered.

Poligrafa is to be found at the principal art fairs around the world, including Art Basel, where it has had a presence since Art Basel 2, Art Basel Miami Beach since its beginning in 2002 and ARCO in Madrid also since the very first fair.

The selection of artists is governed by the criteria of rigor and ambition. In its early years, Polígrafa published editions by artists who are today recognized as among the foremost of their time, such as Joan Miró, Hans Hartung, Henry Moore, Francis Bacon, Eduardo Chillida, Robert Motherwell, Max Ernst, Helen Frankenthaler, Roberto Matta, Christo, Pierre Alechinsky, Wifredo Lam, Antoni Tapies, Karel Appel, Helena Vieira da Silva, Zao Wou Ki, John Cage, George Segal, Larry Rivers, Kenneth Noland, Ed Ruscha, Alex Katz, Rufino Tamayo, Francisco Toledo.

In the last few years it has published editions by contemporary artists from all around the world. Its strong relationship with latinamerica can be seen in the editions with argentinian artists like Guillermo Kuitca, León Ferrari, Liliana Porter and Jorge Macchi, Fabián Marcaccio, brazilians like Saint Clair Cemin, Nelson Leirner, Tunga, Regina Silveira and Daniel Senise, peruvians like Fernando Bryce and Sandra Gamarra, and Fernando de Szyszlo, colombians like Ana Mercedes Hoyos and Nicolas Paris, venezuelans like Carlos Cruz Diez, cubans like Julio Larraz, Kcho, José Bedia and Enrique Martínez Celaya and mexican artists like Dr Lakra and Carlos Amorales.

Northamerica is also well represented in Poligrafa portfolio with artists like Tony Oursler, Vito Acconci, Gary Hill, Lynda Benglis, Ilya Kabakov, David Ratcliff, April Gornik, Eric Fischl, George Condo, Robert Longo, Donald Baechler, Donald Sultan, as well as from countries like China with Wang Huai Qing and Eastern Europe with Tobias Putrih, Nedko Solakov and Dan Perjovschi.